First year in nursing really that hard???

[R.NICU]

really...is it that hard???

i've read many posts about how the first year is when the real learning begins and nurses don't feel comfortable until a year or so after. WHY??? someone please break it down ((and be specific))... what is it that makes it so hard that people cry before and after shifts.? Do not take this as me doubting the difficulty but i'm very curious. I start 1st semester in a couple of weeks and i've been wondering. Is it just getting use to skills, patients, family, doctors, applying what you've learned....??? Thanx in advance for anyone who replies...i'm dying to know.

[LittleWing21, RN]

:chuckle:chuckle:chuckle:chuckle:chuckle:chuckle

i'm sorry, but every time i see the title of this post it just cracks me up. yes, it is hard. it's hard for many diff reasons that vary depending on the person. i think one of the hardest things is that everyone just assumes that since you're the nurse, you know everything. they talk to you in another language (fellow nurses, other units, doctors, etc) and you're expected to know every little acronym, every phone number, and every detail about your pt. and then, if you're at a teaching hospital, you have to know more than the new docs/interns so they don't harm your pt!!! your head just spins with the amount of new stuff you're expected to know immediately. and then of course there's the families: say its your 2nd week of orientation, beginning of shift, first time having the patient and ever walking into their room. of course their family wants to know why grandma's on a, b, and c medications and why hasn't the md/pt/speech come to see them? when are they coming? and when are they being discharged? and where's the best place to park? and when was the last time she pooped? how late is the caf. opened? omg the questions never end!!!!!! an older nurse once told me, if you don't know the answer to something, tell them you have to go put someone on a bed pan and go look it up. i thought that was creative!!!

so anywho, as you can see, having to be the "ultimate resource" is just one of the many difficulties of being a new nurse. the good part? it can only get better from here!!!!